I read these books ages ago when I was a pre-teen and though it would be fun to revisit them. The first one is quite charming - simple, not overly complex but touching and even a bit believable. This second one however raced along from year to year haphazardly but through all that somehow remained, as one reviewer put it, a little boring.
It ran into trouble for me when Marty & Clark have their disagreement about whether or not she should visit Wanda Marshall. Although Clark was clearly intended to be in the right and the scene was supposed to illustrate Marty's stubbornness, it in fact is one of the few scenes that made Clark appear like a domineering, sexist bully and Marty like a petty child who doesn't know what's good for her. In and of itself, it's not a problem: all couples have these problems and it could have been a great opportunity to address them. However the author skimps over the problems and in the end portrays a decidedly anti-feminist resolution in which the bratty Marty is sufficiently chastised by her all knowing husband.
The next issue was even more concerning and made me unsure if I want to continue with the series. The author's treatment of the illicit relationship between Mrs. Graham's white son and his Native American love interest is highly racist. Although Marty sympathises with the young lovers, Ma repeatedly says it's unacceptable and no good can come of children that are "not white or brown." She furthermore goes on to say she will pray God breaks the lovers apart! Even Marty is concerned the couple will be hurt and hopes they will break it off. Literature is full of complex and challenging portrayals of racism and racist protagonists (Gone With the Wind, anyone?) but in this case, the racism is never addressed, directly or otherwise. The couple breaks it off and everyone else seems to breath a sign of relief, especially when Tommy comes home with his new white wife several chapters later.
This scenario left me feeling extremely uncomfortable. As the reader, was I supposed to accept this unsettling incident and continue enjoying the book? Does that and me complicate in the supposedly Christian characters overt racism? As an author, if you are going to tackle an issue like racism, do it right! You can't just pop it into the middle of a book, gloss it over, and worst of all make it look like it was no big deal and the characters were probably justified in their sentiments to begin with. Wait no, worst of all isn't that, it's the fact that they all seem to think God is on their side and ultimately an inter racial relationship wasn't part of his divine plan. Disappointing doesn't begin to cover it!